Spring Cubby

Spring has "officially" sprung finally in Kalamazoo, Michigan!  The sun is out, the birds are chirping and even thought it is chilly, I have a few windows open to welcome some fresh air.  I thought I would celebrate by showing of this fun spring assemblage I recently made for Alpha Stamps.   

This Masonite cubby has 35 small partitions that are one inch square.  I have filled them with all kinds of delightful treasures that remind me of the season at hand.  As I assembled this piece I tried to keep a tighter color palate that was outside my usual range with blue, yellow and pink.

One way to make your pieces unique is to alter your elements along the way.  Above, you can see where I added colors to my bee with liquid pearls.  Also notice on the resin flower towards the top where I used gilders paste.  It works great on all types of surfaces beyond metal such as resin and wood.

I just adore all the cotton spun mushrooms I used throughout the piece. I am not sure why I  obsess over these, but I truly love them.

Lots more altered metal elements down on this section.  The bunny is colored with a bit of alcohol ink to add some depth.  

Overall this piece is probably much smaller than you would ever imagine in real life.   Even though it is small, it is packed with all kinds of spring fun though.

Cheers, 

Rhea

Tiny Geisha and Buddha Houses

These tiny houses were a total blast for an assemblage fan like me.  I was able to alter these small shrines in a very short time frame, which is rare for my mixed media pieces.  It always seems like I am waiting for glue to set!

I made the geisha house first.  Inspiration struck as I was sifting through my trusty box of Alpha Stamps images.  I was simply looking for something that was the proper scale.  When I stumbled upon this picture, my theme quickly took shape.  Check out all the goodies I used here.

To add dimension and age I mounted the picture on a domino.  I then used distress techniques to give my focal age by sanding and adding ink.  Interest was added to my brass elements as well.  I used liquid pearls and gilders paste which are some of my go to products for altering metal bits.  

The smaller of the two houses holds a tiny Buddha.  To hide the hold in the bead, a brad was glued in.  I also had to put something inside of my flower to prop my head up like I wished.  This shrine is trimmed with the tiniest of butterflies and lovely Dresden border.  You can also see that I altered my flower with copper and white gilders paste, with a little liquid pearls in the center.  

I am so enthralled with making these tiny houses that I am participating a in swap for them through Retro Cafe Art.  The deadline is not until May, so there is lots of time to play!

Cheers, 

Rhea

Bunny Dome

One of my recent scores in an Alpha Stamps design team kit was this great plastic dome.  There were also lots of other spring goodies tucked in the package, so that became the theme of my cute little dome.  All of the items used can be found here.

I started out by making a nice mossy borough for my little rabbits.  The back of the piece is built up a bit to maximize the height of the inside.  The flowers were actually added for tallness as well.  I tried to go without them, but it looked too empty inside.  

The bottom was covered in decorative tape and stickels.  I attempted to cover up all of the black plastic base.  I wish I had tried some ribbon or something with a bit more texture.

You may notice that some of the metal is colored.  I used liquid pearls to add a bit of sheen to mother rabbit as well as the baby carrots.   Those tiny rabbits are brads, if you can believe it.  I loved them so much, they were gone in moments.  

Even though I have been posting of spring, it still eludes us here in Michigan.  I am more than ready for the change! 

Cheers, 

Rhea

Graphic 45 Design Team Call Audition 2013

It occurred to me today to try and use some of the "luck of the Irish" of St Patrick's Day to assist in today's application for Graphic 45's current design team call.  I seriously love the products made by this company and I think it shows in my work.  In this post I will highlight a six of my favorite projects, with lots of Graphic 45 products to be seen. 



The letterbox tray above is one of the top posts on my blog and I have also seen it many times on Pinterest.  Here I used one of my favorite papers, Old Curiosity Shoppe.   I think Steampunk Debutante is my next runner up and it is the focal on the next two projects. 



This large mosaic piece hangs in my dining room and I really love it.  It was so hard at the time to use up all those cool gears, but now I get to enjoy them in my art every day.

The book below is another great piece.  Here I finished off all of my paper left over from the project above.  Inside the envelope book are lots of great tags and inserts. 

I would have to say that assemblage is probably my favorite medium to work in.  This next project is a very fun Halloween Assemblage piece that also gets lots of traffic here.  My Steampunk Apothecary employs a very nice collection of different Graphic 45 papers.  I used the Kraft Reflections, Old Curiosity Shoppe and Halloween in Wonderland.  Amazing how seamlessly they all work together.



It was hard to choose between two different Birdsong projects I have recently done. 







Since I could not decide on which one, I ended up choosing to include them both. 





Thank you as always for tuning in.  I hope the luck of the Irish is with you today too!

Cheers,

Rhea



Altered Eggs

I was really inspired by these paper mache eggs from Alpha Stamps.  The first one I made is a bit quirky, but fun nonetheless.  This winged egg has lots of Tim Holtz hardware and a few filigree to make for a slightly steampunk look.  I originally cut a hole in the front to try to do something inside of the egg, but it did not work, so the window was added instead.



The second project that I finished is a hinged egg with a few surprises inside. 



The outside is simply colored with distress stain in silver.  I cannot rave enough about those stains.  Simple decorations were added by way of stickers and tinsel.



Inside the egg there are two little spring nests.  I absolutely love the tiny bunnies, which are actually brads.



Opposite is a more traditional spring nest with a brass bird and tiny eggs.

Perhaps posting of spring and Easter-ey things will help it to arrive a bit sooner in Michigan, boy am I ready!

Cheers,

Rhea

Tattered Floral Spring Box

This project is really an interesting revival for me.  The idea and the theme really echos my very first true mixed media assemblage, so it was fun to reinterpret for this challenge.  Tim Holtz recently posted a call to use his tattered floral steel rule die and I could not resist participating, and walking down memory lane.

The base of the project is a library drawer from 7 gypsies.  Lots of patina colored gilders paste was added to the wood as well as many other elements in the piece.  

Above you can really see some of the flower detail.  Lots of techniques were applied to get to the end result.  I used alcohol inks, gilders paste, embossing and distressing along the way.  The stems were free form sculpted before gluing down.

I just love the tiny cute little bunnies on either side of the sign.  The bird above was cut from some metallic plastic industrial waste that I altered with Vintaj patina and several layers of gilders paste.  

Here the embossed texture of the flower can really be seen.  The floral centers are Tim Holtz door knobs.  It was so hard to use them up, but I had to tell myself it was for a good cause.  I also love the butterflies I made with Graphic 45 butterflies, Dresden scrap and Tim Holtz pen nibs. 

I chose tissue tape to line the inside of the box.  This choice was made because I find it so easy to apply to the pesky edges.  It also helps to carry out the mixed media look. 

Just for fun, here is my first mixed media piece I was speaking of earlier.  For a bit more info here is the link to that post: Steampunk Springtime.

Thanks for stopping by as always.

Cheers, 

Rhea  

Round Robin: Faces Art Journal

This post is to highlight my recent installment in a round robin for my Kindred Souls art group.  This book belongs to Eileen, she has a wonderful blog.  The theme of her book is faces, and I have to admit, I was stuck.  I don't typically include a lot of people or faces in my work.  I really don't know why, but it has been a stumbling point in the past as well.

This sat on my art table for a while, as I slowly built up my page.  Finally today, inspiration struck and I was able to complete it.  I found the central image in a drawer of paper scraps.  A stamp that was dipped in UTEE long ago was added along with lots of layers of text and a Dresden border.  I have had a piece of resin paper I keep tearing off of, and I have been pleased to have this lying around.  

I could not help adding some junk.  I would have kept building on this charm, but I did not want to add too much weight...I think I already may have though!!!  

I had intended to add this face image, on the front of the page, but it just did not happen at the time.  I am pleased with the results on the back though, even if the subject matter is a bit mashed up and quirky. 

Hopefully Eileen will like my contribution!  I look forward to sharing the next installment as well as my finished book someday.

Cheers, 

Rhea